Brand New Identity
by The Reckless Loser
Summary: A new home, a new name, a new identity. After being shunned into a care home, Charlie and her little sister think that's it for them, that is until they wake up in a completly diffrent room. Then Charlie finds she has the oppertunity to make a better life for herself and her sister. Will life at CHERUB mean a better future for Charlie and her sister? Read and Review please :)
1. Chapter 1

**Brand New Identity**

**A/N: Hi hi. Long time no see. I've decided to write a CHERUB story! It's one of my all time fav series and I thought, why not?! If any of you remember my old account, I wrote a story but deleted it after losing the plot bunny! Anyway I hope I don't lose it with this one, it seems good in my head. **

**It follows the life of Charlotte 'Charlie' as she is recruited by CHERUB and takes a new identity. I hope you like it and please review. **

Brand New Identity

Chapter 1

Some people were hopeless. It was a sad fact of life, but a true fact. Charlie's eyes lazily roamed the classroom. Her complete worksheet had been finished in less than ten minutes, now she had nothing to do. She watched as the 'cool' group chattered away, not even trying with their work.

They were hopeless.

Some of the lads had begun ripping the sheets up and hurling them across the dingy room, earning sounds of mock outrage and laughter.

Everyone else in the class was at least talking to one other person, whilst she rested her head on her arm, nobody to talk to. No one ever did talk to her. She was too different. They felt threatened by her and made it clear by sniggering behind her back and taking the mickey out of her. She didn't follow the so-called 'cool' route. If anything she hated the 'cool' route and her class mates for what they were: A group of low intelligent copies.

Her green eyes cast back down to her worksheet as she began to sketch a collection of blue-inked stars in the corner of her page. Her thoughts began to wander in her usual daydream of more people like her, willing to be different. Every day she would bury herself in her fantasies during class. If she couldn't concentrate on a fantasy then she would mutter the lyrics to her favourite songs to herself. One of the girls in her class had heard a line she had been whispering and in two minutes flat the whole class was laughing and calling her faggot for her bad music taste, all because she liked music that wasn't any pop or rap shit that they liked.

Being absorbed in her drawing and fantasies took her so far from the real world that she never heard Mr. Reece calling her name until he was right in front of her and snatching up her sheet.

'Really, you spend all day messing around and drawing on sheets you don't pay attention half the time, Charlotte.' Charlie bit back her tongue as Mr. Reece complained about her. She was the only one who really did any work in class, but he couldn't get the whole class in trouble so it was easier to make an example out of her. As the middle-aged man continued ranting on and on to her, Charlie rolled her eyes and rested her head on the desk, much to Mr. Reece's madness, which resulted in him sending her outside the classroom.

Charlie was happy to exit the room. She collected her stuff and left the room, ignoring the laughter and the mocking 'ooh's' as she left.

Instead of waiting outside, Charlie shifted her bag onto her shoulders and made her way down the corridor's threadbare carpet. She passed classrooms with other students as she headed towards the fire exit and entered into the courtyard. The gates were locked so she threw her bag over the railings by the picnic benches and made a daring push over the black bars, landing gracefully on the tarmac of the parking area. Her trainer clad feet carried her out of the gate and down the road towards the park.

She reached the park on Abbey Road and sat on the one remaining swing. Trees blocked her view but she could still hear the rumble of the busy roads of Manchester. Her feet barely grazed the floor as she swung back and forth without much enthusiasm.

She hated school.

It was as simple as that. She hated the place. Everybody acted like total dicks and thought it was cool. She was the only one of her kind and that made her an outcast. She sighed and tilted back and swung a few more time before leaping from the swing and flying through the air, landing on her feet in a professional fashion. The day time light of November was dying and the nights chill had begun. Charlie dug in her school back for her black hoodie which she gladly zipped up before exiting the park and heading down the main road towards her younger sister's primary school.

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Lucy was the last out of the red bricked building as per usual. Charlie's younger sister was almost identical to herself. They both had the same dark hazel hair, the same jaw line and the same pointed nose. The only difference was their eyes. Lucy had her mother's brown eyes, whilst Charlie had her own mother's green eyes. Neither of them had their father's steel coloured gaze.

Charlie was humming the tune to 'It Never Ends' by Bring Me The Horizon when her sister finally reached her, distain drawn on to her face, just like the marker pen on her cheek.

'What the hell happened to you?' Charlie couldn't help but laugh at the scribbles that donned her eight year old sister's face. Lucy scowled as she tried to scrub it off with the cuff of her navy jacket.

'Some idiots decided it was an art lesson. Ms. Carr saw them but had a go at me!' Lucy was in a foul mood as they walked home, obvious by the bitterness in her voice and the way she angrily stomped on a discarded can of Pepsi.

'What can I say, teachers are dicks. Mr. Reece packed me out the classroom and it wasn't me messing around.'

'Are you sure you weren't drooling over Kyle Manson again?' Lucy sniggered as her sisters face flamed up. Kyle Manson was a dark haired boy in Charlie's English class. He had a liking for heavy metal music and repeatedly moshed his long hair in class. Always cracking jokes, Kyle was one of the most admired boy's in year 7, unlike Charlie who was similar in tastes but was at the bottom of the food chain.

Charlie muttered at Lucy to shut up as they turned down an alley way heading towards the estate where their run down house was situated. As they crossed a road, a police car sped past in a blur of colours, the siren deafening as it cracked the speed limit. The two girls watched the car as it raced towards a crime scene or something. Not that it wasn't unusual, on the Lyons estate, the police were more regular then the drunken man who left the pub at eleven and was shouting at the top of his lungs by one.

The two girls paid the car no attention as they climbed some stone cobbled steps up a grassy banking towards their street. They reached the top step with barely any energy left, but still walked past a post office. They turned a corner and Lucy raced ahead into the off license. Charlie followed her sister to see the girls look at the chocolate bar.

'Got any money?' Lucy asked as she held a Cadbury's bar at her side. Charlie shook her head. Lucy acted downtrodden and from the counter it looked as if she had placed the chocolate back, but Charlie saw her sister slip the treat into her coat pocket.

No alarms went off as they left the off license. Once round the corner by the bins, Lucy took the bar from her pocket and snapped it in half, munching one piece; she gave the other to Charlie who sucked on the treat as they continued down the street.

As they turned the final corner onto Dale Close, Charlie and Lucy stopped dead in their tracks, staring at the action outside their front door. The police car from earlier was badly parked, half on the road, half on the pavement, lights still blaring as two officers dragged a man of thirty-seven out the front door, much to his struggle, and forced him into the car.

'Oi!' Charlie ran up the street, closely followed by Lucy. 'What the hell are you doing?!' One officer looked up as he forced the man's head under the car roof.

'You Charlotte and Lucy Parker?'

'Yeah and why the hell are you arresting our dad?' Charlie was on the verge of boiling point. One of the other officers moved forwards and tried to lead them into the house, but Charlie snatched her arm away and stood as a shield between the officer and Lucy.

'Come inside girls, we'll talk once the social worker gets here.' The policewoman said.

'Social worker?' The colour drained from both girls faces. They'd been threatened with social services plenty of times, but they had always believed it to be an empty threat. The policewoman used their distraction to slowly lead them through the busted front door and into the kitchen.

Their kitchen looked the same as ever: dirty plates mounted high, take away boxes on the counter, bin overflowing, but somehow it wasn't their kitchen. The two girls were still in a state of shock as they sat down at the small rickety table. The policewoman made them both a cup of strong sweet tea, but neither of them could bring themselves to drink it. Neither said a word, as if in a trance, but Charlie was certain she heard the policewoman say that their dad had been arrested on drug dealing and smuggling charges. Lucy grasped her sister's hand at this.

Their dad wasn't the best dad in the world. He liked to scream at the top of his lungs at them; as if they were the reason his life was screwed up. But he could be okay some days. Rarely.

The two girls remained at the table, hands clasped together as one, until the social worker arrived. Her name was Pat. Nearing fifty and hair a light grey, she offered them both a rhubarb and custard, only to be met with twin cold stares. Pat gave a disapproving look but still acted kind, telling them to go pack all necessities. Lucy's hand remained clamped to Charlie's as they climbed the bare staircase, wary of the exposed carpet spikes on automatic.

They reached their shared bedroom, which was deprived of anything really valuable. The room was consistent of a set of ancient bunk beds, a chest of draws and a wardrobe, both rather small, but had plenty of space as they didn't own a great deal. Lucy buried herself amongst the covers of the lower bed, which had been Charlie's, as her sister packed up what they needed.

Everything fit into one plastic bin bag.

Charlie glanced from the wardrobe at Lucy's hunched up from beneath the duvet covers. When sure she wasn't looking, Charlie gently moved the chest of draws back and lifted up a single floorboard. The space was tiny, but it was enough for the bundles of twenty pound notes and the small photo frame.

Within the metal frame, a five year old Charlie was shown; cuddling close to her mother, bother smiling. Charlie slipped the frame into her jacket pocket.

The money was another issue.

Both girls knew their dad was a drug dealer, and a part time smuggler. He made plenty of cash. So much that he never noticed if the occasional bundle disappeared from the kitchen table. The man made so much, but rarely spent a penny on his daughters, so whenever she got the chance, Charlie would swipe a single bundle. She had been collecting for over three months.

She had a crazy dream of being able to provide for herself and Lucy the moment she reached sixteen and left school. It was a crazy dream, but Charlie liked to think of herself as a hopeful person.

Charlie stacked the bundles into her school bag, before collecting the bin bag and moving over to Lucy's hidden form.

'Move it. Time to go.' All the effects of the day showed itself in her voice, masking it as bitterness. Lucy emerged from the covers, white and shaking. She followed Charlie from their bedroom. Neither of them looked back at their house as they climbed into the back of the social workers car.

They didn't want to.

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They were in a home.

One hell of a crazy home.

Thugs in tracksuits charged out the front room, making rude jokes. Little kids charged around, flinging dirt at each other.

Charlie and Lucy were escorted into a head office of the home. At the desk was a middle aged woman smoking as she flicked through a file. Charlie had a fleeting idea that it was her and her sister's file.

'Hi.' The woman said brightly, stubbing out the cigarette in an overflowing ash tray. 'Welcome. It must be a shock, but don't worry. Things will sort itself out.' The woman gave a small smile, but neither Charlie nor Lucy looked. They didn't like it here. They hated school. They hated home. But right now either of them would suit them, rather than here.

**A/N: First chapter. Any good? Worth continuing? Review and let me know. **

**Until the next time,**

**Peace out Peeps xox **


	2. Chapter 2

**Brand New Identity **

**A/N: Hi guys, update here for you. Since I cannot think of a single thing for my other stories I thought I'd update this. I hope you liked the last chapter and a shout out goes to HatefulLove for being the first person to review on this story. I hope you like this one.**

**Enjoy!**

Brand New Identity

Chapter 2

Sleeping with sheets that reek of disinfectant doesn't exactly give you sweet dreams. Charlie stirred beneath the sheets, waking up after only having three hours worth of sleep. As the night had grown, she had laid in the new bed, listening to the sounds of the heavy traffic a few streets away and the breathing of Lucy in the next bed as she thought of the situation she was stuck in.

Stanley house was a rundown building which didn't get a good amount of government funding and was stacked with kids who were harder than any of the year eleven's in her old school. Once glance at the bedside alarm clock and Charlie saw the crappy luminous hands pointing to four-thirty. Charlie sighed and plumped her pillow, hoping for at least an hours sleep. She closed her eyes and felt like she was drifting. Her eyes eventually drooped open and Charlie had no sense of time. She turned over to face the clock and bit back a scream. It was only quarter to five.

She knew sleep was hopeless so she pushed back the sheets and slid on her trainers, then slowly padding across the carpet, opening the door as quietly as she could to not awaken Lucy. Charlie closed the door behind her just as quietly and surveyed the abandoned corridor. She felt exposed in her make-shift nightie, which was actually just an extremely extra large Nirvana shirt, the bright yellow smiley face on the black background mocking her as she craned her head at the new place which as her new home. There were another three bedrooms on this floor for the girls, and a large bathroom at the end of the corridor by the stairs. Charlie reached the end of the corridor and descended the carpeted stairs. On the landing was a large window overlooking the garden. It may have been beautiful once upon a time, but now the long grass was littered with fag ends and crushed beer cans, accompanied by wrappers from McDonald's and KFC.

Muffled sounds and flickering lights came from the half open living room door. At her old home, if she ventured down at this time, it was guaranteed that her dad had fallen asleep in front of the TV again. But here, she had no clue who it could possibly be. It could be one of the smaller kids or one of the thuggish teenage lads.

Charlie couldn't help but tiptoe towards the door when her ears pricked at the sound of music. Whoever was in there had decent music taste and was watching a decent channel. The sticker coated door was already open ajar, but not much. So Charlie sucked in her stomach as best she could and pressed up against the wall as she ventured inside.

A girl probably the same age as her was spread across the sofa, watching what appeared to be the highlights at the most recent Download Festival. Charlie's heart leapt. Every year she watched he highlights if she got the chance-which only happened if her dad left for some reason. The programme was featuring Black Veil Brides as they played _Fallen Angels_. Charlie gave herself a small smile as she watched Andy Biersack prance around the stage, cheered on by the crowd.

Two more songs passed until the girl on the sofa spoke.

'You do know you can sit down if you want.' Charlie was so tensed up that she flew half a meter up in the air. The girl's head spun round and she waved her arm in a welcoming gesture. Charlie stayed frozen but decided she might as well sit down. She tugged down on her Nirvana shirt before sitting on the edge of the sofa where the other girl's feet had been moments before. She felt awkward in her pyjamas but the girl was in her own nightie so it wasn't too bad, but the lack of conversation was a dead silence in the air, apart from Andy Biersack on the television.

'You like this sort of music?' The girl spoke, not taking her eyes off the screen.

'Yeah, they're one of my favourite bands.'

'Cool. I've been here nearly two months and so far I've had shit luck finding anyone who likes this stuff. I had to sneak down here to watch this because everyone else takes the piss.' Charlie nodded at the girls words.

'A kid at my old school heard me humming Knives and Pens at one point and the whole school started calling me faggot and stuff.'

'Nobody has decent music taste anymore.' The girl shook her head. 'Still, Black Veil Brides are releasing a new album in January I heard, _Wretched and Divine_ or something. Should be good.' Charlie nodded as she sunk back into the sofa. The girl held out her hand, which held a large paper bag filled with chips and pieces of red pepper.

'Salt and Pepper chips from the Chinese. Bit cold but still good. Take some.' Charlie smiled and dug her hand into the bag and placed some of the strongly hot chips into her mouth.

'I'm Bex, by the way. You're Charlie right?' Charlie cast a suspicious eye over to the girl and spoke after swallowing.

'Who'd you know my name?' Bex faltered for just a second that Charlie thought she'd imagined it.

'I heard one of the social workers say your name. I was supposed to share a room with you but apparently your little sister wanted to stick close to you.' Charlie nodded and took the second helping of chips offered to her. She pulled her feet up on the sofa as she watched the festival crowds cheer.

She and Bex sat for at least an hour and a half before the sun had fully risen and a house parent came downstairs to start the breakfast and confronted the two girls.

'You've got your first council session today, and you stay up all night? Not a wise move, Charlie. And you should know better Rebecca.' The house parent scolded them both as the two girls rolled their eyes. The house parent then told them they could help with breakfast since they were such early birds.

The two quickly raced upstairs instead. Bex went into the room just two doors from Charlie, who entered her own room and was hit over the head with a flattened pillow.

'Thanks for ditching me.' Lucy was particularly moody in the morning and finding her sisters bed had made her worse.

The two girls grabbed their clothes and made their way to the bathroom before any of the other girls woke up.

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Breakfast was a rushed affair, with all kids rushing off the school, including Bex who asked Charlie if she wanted to hang out later on, which Charlie was more than happy to agree to.

After tiding their rooms, which the two slacked off on, each of them had to report to a separate councillor. Charlie went to the second floor and met with a woman in her late forties, but in brilliant physical health. She introduced herself as Harriet. She gestured to the sofa on which Charlie laid down on like all those films you saw with a therapist.

'How do you feel today, Charlotte?'

'A little tired, and it's Charlie.'

'Tired? I'm not surprised. One you've had a nasty shock with the arrest of your father, and two, staying up all night with Rebecca Channing watching music video is not a good way to catch a few hours, is it?' Charlie gave a small groan, as Harriet flicked through a file, which Charlie had a feeling was her own.

'Say's here, your mother died when you were six, and there is no known location of your sister's mother. Do you have any other relatives?'

'No. My dad grew up in a home as well and I never met any of my mother's family, not even a chance since I never went to her funeral.' Harriet made a disapproving noise as she flicked through the rest of the beige coloured file. For the rest of the session, Harriet would ask random questions, like how was she feeling, what plans did she have for the future, and what were her interests.

The session finally came to an end and Charlie felt a bit weird at talking to someone besides Lucy for so long. At thinking of Lucy, Charlie went into the dining room where Lucy was cutting up paper and gluing feathers and pasta to a large empty cola bottle.

'What...are you doing?' Charlie asked with a raised eyebrow as she looked upon the mess of food and paper stuck all over the bottle. It looked as if a bomb had gone off in a craft shop and everything stuck to the bottle.

'I'm making a rocket.' Lucy said without looking up from her 'creation'.

'Ok then.' Charlie spun on her heel and decided to go for a walk. Lucy was capable to look after herself, and she wanted to head back home to the Lyons estate to see what was going on at her house.

From the opposite side of Manchester, it took Charlie almost half an hour to reach the first road leading to the estate. She passed the off-licence she and Lucy had been in the previous afternoon, no idea on what was coming next.

She reached the opening of Dale Close, and even from the far end of the street she could see police crawling all over her house. There were a few on-lookers as well, just to make it worse, some were from her school. Before any of them turned and spotted her, Charlie ducked into a nearby alleyway and ran up the backstreet, dodging washing like bullets as she sprinted across several roads (Ignoring the blares of any car horns) until she reached Abby Road park where she had seeked solitude in yesterday after being kicked out of school.

The single swing still remained; the gentle breeze of the afternoon gave it a small push. Charlie placed herself on the seat which she had sat on so many times in was as if she was moulded to the seat. She remembered when the park was nice and bright and more child friendly then the dump it was now. Charlie remembered being six years old and taking her mother's hand and walked to the park, where she would only go on the swing. She never liked the monkey bars or the slide, so her mother would push her extra high on the swing; even join her when it was a double set. Charlie glanced to her right. The swing had long since been broken off, long lost just like her mother. If it wasn't for the picture she owned, Charlie was certain she'd have forgotten what her mother looked like.

Charlie was just captured in her own thoughts when it appeared her face wanted to say a hello to the ground. She fell from the swing without much grace, causing the skin to be wiped off from her left cheek.

'What you doing round here, freak? I heard your dad got nabbed and you got sent to some dump. Not that it's much different to your other home.'

Great. Charlie thought, it was Chelsea McKinnon, the only girl with her head stuck up her own ass so much it's a wonder how she lives with herself. Charlie picked herself up and dusted her black t shirt off.

'I ain't looking for trouble, Chelsea, and I'm not in the mood so don't try anything.' Chelsea and her small gang of stuck up princesses all giggled.

'Watch out, Chelsea, the freak means business.' The group laughed and circled around Charlie, making her feel like a cornered cat. But this kitty has claws. As Chelsea and one of her blonde cronies made a move to punch her, Charlie grabbed both their fists and used their own force against them, pushing them to a ground, snapping one of the incredibly high heels on Chelsea's shoes.

Charlie was shocked at her sudden burst of strength, but didn't have time to ponder on it as two more came towards her, long fake nails like daggers as they scratched her face. Charlie's feet suddenly left the air and the two girls were lying on the floor, clutching their sides and wailing. They were all down on the cork floor now, and Charlie examined her own fist as if it were an alien. She'd always dreamed of fighting back, all kung fu style, but this didn't seem real.

With one last look at the girls on the ground, trying to pull themselves back up, Charlie sprinted away from the scene to the park gate and dashed out down the road away from everyone, including Bex who had been stationed behind a tree in her uniform, watching everything. Bex pulled out her phone and dialled a special number. When the person on the opposite end picked up, she spoke in a low whisper.

'Hey, it's Bex. You know that new girl, Charlie Parker? I think she's just what we're looking for.'

**A/N: There you go, next chapter Charlie wakes up a CHERUB. Where will it lead her? Find out next time. Review and encourage me and I might update faster. **

**Until the next time,**

**Peace out Peeps xox **


	3. Chapter 3

**Brand New Identity **

**A/N: Hey guys, sorry for the delay. Been thinking. I'll keep this short so you can read on. Thanks to the guys who reviewed on my story so far. It means a lot. This will only be a short one, but the next shall be better, I promise. **

**Enjoy!**

Brand New Identity

Chapter 3

The last things that sprung to Charlie's mind was the smack-down with Chelsea McKinnon in the park then running as fast as her feet would carry her through the thriving streets of central Manchester, heading towards the Lyons estate before realising her mistake and doubling back in the direction of Stanley House.

Charlie couldn't remember even reaching the front door, let alone moving into a new room. She had woken up just naturally after the first decent sleep in a long time. Charlie had pushed the new thick duvet off to revel herself to be in a fairly large, freshly painted room. And it was one hell of a room! It was a single room, very clean with white walls. There was a mini fridge, a kettle, a decent sized television set and a telephone on the bedside table besides a lamp. Charlie gaped in awe as she took in her new surroundings. It was like one of the rooms you saw on television for five star hotels.

It certainly wasn't one of the rooms in Stanley House.

Confused, she climbed out of the large comfortable bed for her toes to meet a soft carpet. She looked down and realised her clothes were missing. Charlie flushed red and quickly scanned the room for a set of clothes to cover herself up with. Neatly pressed and folded on the desk across from her bed was a small pile of clothing. With further inspection they turned out to be a set of underwear, a pair of green military style trousers with zipped pockets, a pair of fresh out of the box boots, similar to Doc Martens and an orange t-shirt, with the simple black logo of what seemed to be a winged baby on a globe. Underneath, the initials CHERUB had been written in bold black font.

Charlie stirred the words around in her head to see if the words meant anything to her, or anything that would give her a clue to her location but nothing came to mind. She shrugged as they were the only clothes on offer so she pulled the freshly laundered clothing on.

After lacing up the polished black boots (The twelve year old had never felt more comfortable in any clothes except these), Charlie stood up from the bed which she awoke in, dressed in the uniform and crossed the carpet of the spacious room to the window, the silver blinds covering it rattling in the wind which entered through the open window. Charlie pulled the blinds up and her eyes widened at the site of the voluminous outside land, sprinkled with tennis courts, a basketball court, and a large outdoor football field could be seen in the distance, towards the larger trees, surrounded by mounted seating stands.

It took time, but Charlie finally managed to pull herself away from the window when the sound of a buzzing bell could be heard in her ear. Moments later, outside was alive with other people, the oldest being seventeen at the most, and tiny kids of three could be seen being escorted across the outdoor paths, floors below her window.

She crossed the carpeted floor to the sound of footsteps and voices on the other side of the white door. Before her hand got near the circular handle, she snatched her hand back like it was hot.

'_Wait,'_ She thought to herself. '_You wake up in a strange place, with no memory coming here, so think. Where could you be and why?' _It was a reasonable enough question. Charlie backed up and sat at the swivel chair parked at the desk. She turned back and forth as she thought absently.

There were plenty of kids here. Was it a care home? No, it was too high up; it couldn't be with all this high priced gear. Wait, she had seen some kids with books and bags, was it a school? A school with bedrooms...a boarding school? And with all the gym equipment and military styled gear, was it a military school? Is that where she had ended up? The police had found out about her decking Chelsea McKinnon and decided it was best to ship her off to a school to break her down so she wouldn't turn out like her dad?

Charlie sighed and realised the only way to find out would be to leave this room and find some sort of evidence or something to give her a helpful clue. She left the comfort of the padded seat and re-traced her steps back to the door, to which she turned the handle and stepped into the corridor.

The hustle and bustle of kids going to class had died down, but the corridor was still littered with a few kids who seemed to have free time as they were causally leaning against walls and lockers, chatting to one another. Charlie noted they were all wearing the same military style clothing as her; possibly proving her theory of military school true, but the only difference was the t shirts. She had woken up and found an orange. But there were kids wearing gray and navy. One tall girl walked past wearing a black shirt, the logo in white.

There were two girls a few years older than Charlie standing by an entrance to a double set of stairs. They didn't seem too threatening, so Charlie approached them and mustered her courage.

'I just woke up here, I have no bloody clue what's going on. Can you tell me where I am or where to go?' The two girls stopped talking and both gave her small smiles that made her feel like a child.

'Sorry. Can't talk to orange.' The girl with the grey top said, as her friend in the navy pointed to a lift and lifted one finger. For a moment Charlie thought the girl gave her an 'Up yours' sign, but realised she meant the first floor.

'Thanks.' She said, making her way to the lift, dodging speeding kids who were obviously late for class. She pressed the silver circular button and read the red light on the side which told her the lift was coming from the seventh floor, coming down.

It gave her the basic idea of the height of the place, which also helped her think of how many residents there were and the classrooms, but they were all just possibilities.

The lift dinged, signalling its arrival, the doors opening smoothly, revelling a small child in a red shirt with a young man in a white shirt. Charlie got into the lift and pressed the button for the ground floor.

'Where am I?' She asked the young fair-haired man who was clearly a teacher or a carer or something similar. If anyone could talk to her an adult could.

But apparently, no.

'Can't talk to orange.' The man said and the small boy at his side sniggered. Charlie noticed the buttons on the lift told her the place had up to nine floors, but she was sure that when she looked outside she saw other buildings on the grounds. The man and child exited on the third floor and Charlie had the lift to herself for the rest of the journey. Once on the first floor, it was revelled to be a sort of reception.

The floor was so polished, her boots squeaked and she could see her nervous reflection as she headed towards a curved desk which was the length of one wall, the logo with the winged baby on the wall behind, as well as a mounted statue in the middle of the floor, surrounded by soft black sofas and coffee tables.

At the front desk was an old lady, squinting through tiny glasses at an Agatha Christie novel. Charlie froze for a second, but decided asking was the only way to find out where she was. She reached the desk and rested her arms on the cool surface. There were no pamphlets or broachers' that could help indicate her location.

'Excuse me, _please_ don't say '_can't talk to orange_', but where-' Charlie was cut short by a the old lady who smiled.

'Good to see you've woken up, Charlie. The Chairwoman would like to see you straight away.' Puzzled, but intrigued, Charlie hastily followed the elderly receptionist through a set of double doors which lead down an adorning corridor.

Once they reached the end of the neat and orderly corridor, they were met with a large set oak door. The woman knocked trice and a woman's voice inside allowed them access. The receptionist opened the door and shooed Charlie inside.

'Ah. Nice to meet you at last, Charlie.' A woman of roughly thirty-five smiled warmly as she stepped around her glass desk. 'Sit.' The woman said, motioning to the chair on the opposite side of the desk. As she sat, Charlie gave the room a quick scope. Other people had used this office, which was obvious. The woman gave the room a modern way to it with the glass desk, smart computer on top and the black sofa's by the fire, but the walls were old fashioned wooden board and leather bound books were scattered across the walls.

'My name's Zara Asker, Charlie. I'm the Chairwoman here at CHERUB.' Charlie's head whipped around.

'I can't remember how I go here.' Charlie said, feeling dumb as the words left her mouth. Zara gave a small knowing smile.

'The person who brought you here gave you a small injection to sleep. But you really don't sleep easy so we had to give you a little more than the usual amount. You might remember a little less then what others do when they first wake up here.' Charlie nodded as she came to terms of what was happening. Zara spoke again. 'Tell me, what are your first impressions of us?' Charlie glanced around as she thought on her answer.

'This place is a load better than Stanley house, but I don't think you're a typical children's home.' Zara smirked and nodded.

'Your right: We're not a children's home. What do you think we are?'

'A school, or something similar. A military school somewhere. I don't know. But I know one thing.' Zara raised an eyebrow.

'Oh? And what would that be?'

'You have access to a lot more than a usual children's home. You can research anything.' Zara smiled.

'How did you figure that out?'

'You called me Charlie. On my record I'm down as Charlotte, since that's my real name, but you can find out all the little details, including my nickname which isn't on record.'

'Very good. You've just displayed skills that we look for in people young as you.' Charlie didn't understand. Zara explained.

'How would you feel about living here, Charlie?' As the words reached her ears, Charlie thought it might be a hoax, but she knew it wasn't. It was too big.

'Seriously? Leave Stanley House?' Just the idea made her smile. Then something struck her. 'What about Lucy? My little sister. Is she here as well?' Zara shook her head.

'Your sister is back at Stanley house. You're the eldest, you make the decision for the pair of you. We found out that you're very close and you always look out for your sister's best interest. If you agree to live here, Lucy is just as welcome.'

'There's a catch though, isn't there?'

'Good. You think fast on your feet. If you agree to live here, Charlie, then you agree for both you and your sister to be trained to become members of the British Intelligence.' Charlie stared at the woman, dumbstruck.

'You what? Like a spy or something?'

'Exactly like that.' Charlie didn't believe her, so Zara explained the purpose of using children through the house burglary story which had explained the method to many other possible Cherub's over the years. At the end of the story, Charlie was nodding as she grasped the idea.

'Understand?' Zara asked. Charlie nodded.

'So, do you just pick random kids off the street and see if they agree then let them in?' Zara laughed.

'I thought you called us 'intelligent'? We couldn't be very smart then, would we. No, if you have the good qualities, then you are put to the test to let us judge you skills to see whether or not you are a suitable applicant. Are you interested in these tests?' Zara only had to wait a second before she got Charlie's confident answer.

'Bring 'em on.'

**A/N: Hey, I hope I didn't overwhelm you guys with dialogue. In the next one, Charlie takes the tests and what will happen? Find out next time. Review and I will write faster with persuasion. Hope you liked it. **

**Until the next time, **

**Peace out Peeps xox **


	4. Chapter 4

**Brand New Identity**

**A/N: Hi there folks, sorry for the wait on this one, been such a busy bee :) Hope you're all still interested in this story as this chapter is a belter. Let's see where Charlie ends up. **

**Enjoy!**

Brand New Identity

Chapter 4

To say that these tests were going to be easy, Zara made sure Charlie knew they would be the exact opposite. On the way to the first test, Zara drove them both in a golf buggy, giving Charlie a better view of CHERUB campus. The place was huge; Zara explained that there were roughly 250 pupils and all the education facilities that one would need to get the highest qualifications possible.

The golf buggy came to a halt outside a large classic looking gym. The Chairwoman led Charlie in through the doors, her eyes adjusting to the dimmer light, to see a large ring set up in the centre of the room.

'Normally we use the dojo for the tests, but unfortunately the roof needs repairing, so instead we're going to take the test here, with a bit of a twist than normal.' Zara lead her over to a tall slender girl, dressed in what seemed white pyjama's with a black belt, doing leg muscle stretches.

'Charlie, meet Amanda. Amanda here is going to test you in your fighting skills. Shoes and socks off please.' Charlie removed her socks and shoes and stepped into the marked ring onto a puffy blue mat. Her toes prickled on the cold rubber.

'Peron to get five submission's wins, and please, no eye gorging.' Zara glared at Amanda at that and the girl looked rather sheepish.

'In three,' Zara announced as she sat down in a convenient plastic school seat. Amanda poised herself in a ready stance on the balls of her feet, fists ready.

'Two,' Zara called. Charlie lifted her fists up rather doubtfully.

'One.' Just as the last letter left Zara's mouth, Charlie swung her fists out in a brutish manner, but it was pointless for Amanda was already gone. Charlie gaped and was suddenly lifted up from the floor by her left arm and her hair, then slammed into the mat, the blue obscuring her vision. Amanda pushed her face deeper into the mat. Amanda wasn't even fazed by her flailing limbs.

'Submit already!' Amanda shouted as she forced her face into a more painful position.

'Alright, I submit!' Amanda let go of the back of her head and Charlie was able to pick herself up of the mat. She looked down at the blue rubber and saw a small pool of blood. Her nose was running down her top lip and into her mouth, letting her taste the metallic taste. Charlie wiped it on her arm and held her fists up again. She didn't even wait for Zara to set the next round as she charged at Amanda's skinny frame, but that was what the girl wanted. As soon as Charlie was in front of her, Amanda locked both her fists together and smacked the recruit across the face, then when on the floor, pinned the girl to the mat and bent her arm back as far it could go.

'Argh! Ok, ok! I submit! I give in!' Amanda got off her back and offered her a hand up. Charlie was seething but took the hand.

'Give in?' Zara asked. Charlie nodded, trying not to cry with the crusting pain of her nose and the burning sensation of her arm.

'Good, then let's head off to the next test.' The Chairwoman stood and left the gym. Charlie followed in dismay behind her, trying to stop the bleeding from her nose.

The next test was set in a large assembly hall. Rows of single exam desks sat in the hall, but she was the only on there, apart from Zara and an examiner sitting at the front. The bleeding from her nose had stopped and her arm's burning sensation had dimmed, so she managed to concentrate fairly well as she read the exam paper questions. The further along she went, the harder they got, which was difficult as she was gaining a headache from being smashed into the rubber mat. She had only just finished the last question when the examiner scooped her paper up.

The next test was worse than getting her face smashed by Amanda and the written papers. Charlie stared up at the giant wooden obstacle as it loomed over her. Heights didn't bother her, she liked the view. But she'd never climbed that high, and the more she thought of it, the nastier the images of falling came to mind. The two instructors were identical twins called Miles and Kieran. Both in black shirts and were vibrant red-heads and had no difficulty in scaling the ladder up to the first platform.

'Come on!' Miles (or was it Kieran?) Shouted from the platform. Charlie took a deep breath and climbed the rungs of the ladder. She reached the first platform to see both twins smiling with identical grins. They were standing in front of a zip wire which travelled over ten meters to another platform, which had a ladder heading up higher.

'You'll get a harness, but you've got to use the wire to get the other side.' Miles said as his brother demonstrated by hugging the wire and crawling across in a shuffle. Kieran reached the other end in two minutes and waved from the next platform. Miles hooked her up to the wire's harness and Charlie dared a look down. Idea's of the rope snapping and her falling to her death, becoming flatter than a bad pancake scrambled her mind.

'Go on,' Miles said. 'It's okay; nobodies had an accident with the harness on for about three years.' Charlie's eyes widened.

'Go on, before I kick you off and you'll fail.' Charlie didn't want to fail, it seemed terrifying but CHERUB seemed so much better than the crummy life she had back home. She pictured Chelsea McKinnon mocking her for being scared. Charlie gritted her teeth and lifted herself up on to the wire and began to shuffle across. She may have been connected to the harness, but she didn't feel any safer until her boots touched the wood of the next platform. Once clear of the wire, Kieran unhooked her and lead her up the next ladder as Miles came across on the wire.

It took a lot of teeth gritting, but Charlie managed it across the entire frame. It was the end that nearly killed her. They were meant to drop from the platform on to a crash mat down on the ground, dodging the branches. She very nearly quit there and then, but with a little persuasion from Miles, she managed to get down. And by persuasion, she meant Miles kicking her up the backside and resulting with her falling off the platform and landing in a heap on the crash mat, nearly getting crushed by the tough teenagers as they came tumbling down.

The last test involved dinner. On her way, she passed the cafeteria and saw the menu serving chicken. She licked her lips at the thought of food, but when she reached Zara's office, she had a sneaking suspicion she was the one supplying one of the chickens for lunch, as on the desk, in a metal mesh cage, sat one plump chicken, clucking away.

'Last test.' Zara said with a knowing smile. 'Kill it.'

'What?' Charlie looked at the helpless chicken and back at Zara.

'I said kill it. You eat chicken, don't you?' Charlie nodded. 'Then kill it.'

'I don't want to.'

'Why not?'

'It's done nothing wrong.'

'Neither did that cow you ate in a burger last night at Stanley house.' Colour drained from Charlie's face as she knew she'd have to.

'How?' Zara handed her a ballpoint pen and explained. Charlie sighed, turned the chicken away from her and dived into the cage.

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Exhausted, Charlie sat in Zara's office, picking at a Wicklow on her nail as Zara scanned through the report on all her tests. She eventually closed the file and set it on her desk.

'How do you think you did, Charlie?'

'I didn't get a single hit in the fighting test.'

'I'd be surprised if you did. Amanda has trained martial arts since she was four. Chelsea McKinnon on the other hand, hasn't, which let you beat her, but let you get beat by Amanda. You gave up when you knew you couldn't win, that showed smart thinking on your behalf, so you passed.' Zara went through the others tests, flicking back through the file.

'You did well in the written exams, getting an average of 89% on the mathematics and 92% on the others. The obstacle, Kieran and Miles tell me that you struggled, but got your strength together and pulled through the whole thing.' Charlie smiled and thought she'd have to thank the twins if she saw them again. 'The last test however, you get a very low pass. Many, like you did, let me bully them into killing the chicken. But you still passed. So overall, I'm happy to let you take place here at CHERUB.' Charlie couldn't keep the smile of her face; so was so happy that she actually punched the air.

'If you agree to join, then we can arrange for both you and your sister to be collected from Stanley house and brought here.'

'Will Lucy have to go though the same tests as me?' Thinking she could maybe give her sister a heads up.

'No, Lucy is under ten years of age, making her a junior so the tests aren't necessary for her.'

'Lucky,' Charlie mumbled under her breath.

'You, however, have a week and a half to prepare for basic training, and unfortunately I can't sugar coat it, it is brutal and tough. It will tell you whether or not you're good enough to be an agent for CHERUB. When you return you will be put on a special programme so you're in perfect health for when you start.'

At this, Zara told her she could have some dinner on campus before she is driven back to Stanley House. Charlie was escorted to the canteen where she had a large selection of food to pick from. The downside was whenever she went near anyone, they stopped talking. It was a long time until someone pointed out sauces, as she continuously got '_Can't talk to orange._'

Charlie eventually was allowed to sit at a table and devour a plate of spaghetti bolognaise with three pieces of garlic bread. She wolfed down the steaming rich tasting pasta. It was a million times better than the food at Stanley House.

Once she had wiped the last of the pasta sauce from her plate with her last piece of garlic bread, and slurped the last of the Tango from the can she had got, Charlie's escort then lead her out of the canteen and outside into the warm breeze of early evening. She was taken to a windowless van and bundled inside. She spread out on the seats and drifted off. After two hours sleep, she was shaken awake by the driver. They swapped to a people carrier and she managed to read some of the road signs. They told her she was further south than she'd been in her life, but it wasn't entirely helpful.

She had fallen into a fitful sleep again when they reached Manchester.

The driver dropped her off at the end of the street and Charlie walked down the deserted street of Manchester towards Stanley House. She looked at her watch and saw it was half one in the morning. The soft glow of the street lamps showed all the faults of Stanley House and she felt a little disappointed that she had to stay here for who knows how much longer before her bus back to CHERUB. Charlie wondered about how she would explain to Lucy where they were going, but there was other explaining she had to do first.

The front door had been bolted and locked do she spent ten minutes ringing the bell and knocking until the manageress came to the door in dressing gown and slippers.

'Where the bloody 'ell 'ave you been?' Charlie stuttered for an excuse, trying not to look the fuming woman in the eye.

'I, er, went...bowling?'

'Bowling? Bowling? For twelve hours? Nice try miss. When you get up in the morning you ain't gonna get half an earful off me. Bed. Now. We've had the police after you and all.'

Charlie ran passed the woman and charged up the stairs. She entered her room and was met with flailing fists.

'Where the hell have you been? I thought you'd ditched me!' Lucy was doing her best to punch her older sister in the face, but Charlie lifted her up and threw her onto her own bed.

'I'll explain in the morning. I need sleep now.' Charlie barely had time to think since she was drifting the moment her head hit the pillow.

'Yeah, you'd better!' Lucy grumbled as she climbed into her own bed sheets. 'The police came round here; apparently you decked Chelsea McKinnon and bust her lip.' At that Charlie smiled and fell asleep properly for the first time in a long while. The smile still on her face.

**A/N: There you go, Charlie is accepted into CHERUB! Bet you can't wait to see what happens when she gets to Campus in the next chapter. I'll do my best to get it up soon. Hope you liked it and please take a sec to tell me. **

**Until the next time,**

**Peace out Peeps xox **


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